So…funny
thing; I thanked James for getting rid of my witness for me and he had no idea
what I was talking about. I never had a witness just disappear before.
Maybe I
still haven’t.
In any case
I’m back to my regular murder schedule. There’s no point worrying about things
out of my control.
Anymore.
I’ve been on
this dismemberment spree lately. Not just beheadings but…multiple pieces of
people. It’s actually very satisfying to make a clean cut. You know when you
got to a restaurant or catered events and the platers are cut absolutely
perfect. I keep thinking of carrots which might be because my last kill lost
her fingers in a “maybe this is the beginning of a serial killer” vibe.
Of course
it’s not, because I learned my lesson about creating obvious patterns. The
answer is always DON’T DO IT. It’s never worth it to be witty and creative when
you can be quick, clean, and to the point. If you learn anything from fictional
villainy it’s that you never let the hero live for the sake of some future
reason (be that revenge or magic hour).
Why do
tomorrow what you can kill today?
This has
been your inspirational quote of the day.
Do you know
how stagnant and unromantic my relationship has become?
My husband
brought me flowers and chocolates for Valentine’s Day. I had forgotten about
this Hallmark Holiday until we got home from work and threw his “gifts” on the
table and walked away.
It was a
good kick in the pants. I realized I’ve been neglecting some of my other
relationships.
James has
been working hard lately and I haven’t been ignoring him lately; he just hasn’t
needed my attention – I thought. Even worse than that, he really pulled through
this week.
I went in
for an interview at the police station and they told me that the witness to my
crimes has recanted and they are looking at all the evidence when it comes to “solving
this heinous crime”. That’s code for “he knows it’s me but he can’t prove it.”
My
wonderful husband came through once again. And I wasn’t even paying attention.
I couldn’t
even tell you what Jason has been up to. Remember my son? The computer scientist
working minimum wage who knows I’m a serial killer and just doesn’t say
anything? I have no idea what he’s been doing with his time. For all I know, he’s
started building a death ray in his bedroom or he got himself a significant
other and just hasn’t told me.
I would
have no idea if he was planning to move out of the country and join the Russian
circus.
Although,
have you been watching the Olympics? Such drama. Such athletic achievement.
That’s
really all I have to add, I just thought it was topical.
The point
is, pay attention to the people in your life: one of them could have joined the
Spanish Mafia and is looking for a new house for him and his pregnant wife
right now. You could never know.
Last week I talked about the couple I dismembered and left
in an alley when I witnessed a car accident that had me in the police station
over night. Apparently, the accident was more serious than I thought and thanks
to an anonymous tip and a well-placed security camera, I was called in for
questioning.
I was released of my own volition but instructed not to
leave town like in all those cop shows where they know who the killer is but
don’t have enough proof.
And to top it off, James can’t get in to talk to this
supposed witness because they’re in protective custody and there’s a rumor that
the department has a leak.
Suddenly there is so much riding on the next few weeks.
Shit.
At this particular juncture, I don’t have a game plan and
that is making me nervous. So I turn to you, dear readers. Any suggestions?
Because other than “no more murder”, I can’t see a solution.
As it is, I’m putting a temporary holding on any upcoming murder plans; but I
won’t stop unless I’m stopped. And I will not be stopped.
Today Julie Hall and Rockstar Book Tours
are revealing the cover and an exclusive excerpt for DOMINION, book 3 in her Life After series, which releases March
20, 2018! Check out the gorgeous cover and enter to win a Signed copy of Book 1 HUNTRESS, Swag, and a $10 Amazon Gift card!
After defeating the red dragon’s legion
of bloodthirsty demons, Audrey can finally settle into the afterlife with the
knowledge her family is safe. But her quest for a perfect existence shatters the
moment Logan is kidnapped in an attempt to bend her to Satan’s will.
Audrey must now travel to the one place
no hunter has ever ventured to save the man she loves . . . Hell.
Savage demons, desiccated corpses, life
sucking zombie trees, and a land of death and rot await Audrey and her friends
as they battle through the fiery realm.
But Logan’s freedom comes with a price .
. . the destruction of Audrey’s happily ever after.
As Satan schemes for dominion over all
the realms, Audrey learns that some acts may be beyond redemption.
Cover Reveal
Trailer:
Exclusive Excerpt
We sat on his bed, tucked up against the headboard, Logan sitting with one knee bent and an outstretched leg, and me curled into a ball against his chest, practically cuddled on his lap.
When my tears were spent, I let out a shaky breath of air.
“Audrey, I can’t—” Logan’s voice caught on something. His head rested on top of mine. When he continued, his voice dropped an octave, thickened with emotion. “I can’t imagine what you went through down there. I’m so very sorry. I should never have bonded with you.”
I savored the warm thud of his heartbeat on my cheek for several seconds before what he’d said sunk in. The leakage from my eyes along with a bad case of the feels must have dulled my reactions.
I jerked to a sitting position to stare at him in disbelief—and anger. My face was crusted with the salt of dried tears. There was no doubt I was a hot mess and a half. But that was nothing compared to the mess he’d just spewed.
He reached for me again, but I put a hand up to ward off his movements and curled my upper lip.
Where to even start?
“What I went through? Are you insane?” His gaze jumped around my face as if he couldn’t decide on a safe place to land. “Logan, I actually felt an echo of what you went through. I even experienced some of it in a dream or a weird out of body experience where I was you. What I went through was nothing.”
He opened his mouth to speak, but I slashed a hand through the air to stop him. “Nothing compared to what had been done to you. You were torn to shreds. Literally, in some spots.”
His face paled. I shouldn’t have gone there and instantly regretted bringing it up—but I couldn’t handle his concern for me when he had been tortured. We’d get to the “should never have bonded with you” comment next.
“You experienced some of . . . of what I went through?” he asked.
Shoot, I gave him another reason to beat himself up. Rookie mistake. “Never mind about that. And what’s this business about regretting bonding with me? Frankly, that’s kind of—hey!”
He grabbed my upper arms and held me still as I tried to push away even farther. His blue eyes flashed, and his face was hard as stone. “If bonding with you caused you to feel even a second of what I endured in that place, then yes, it’s something I deeply regret and would do anything to take back.”
Buried under the caveman response was something sweet, but I wasn’t feeling it.
“Argh. You . . .” I pointed a finger at his face. “You just . . .”
As I sputtered to find the right words, the corners of Logan’s lips just barely tipped up. I stopped talking when I spotted his involuntary reaction. Of course I’d find a guy who thought it was cute when I got mad. Actually, that was probably pretty lucky considering I did tend to have a short fuse.
I pressed my lips together and narrowed my eyelids before performing another visual sweep of his body.
Yep, he looked to be relatively healthy.
I launched myself at him and grabbed the sides of his face, and then I planted my lips right over his. Just like the first time I’d surprised him with a kiss, he was momentarily stunned.
I gently but firmly bit down on his full bottom lip in a silent demand for him to get with the program. Then I pulled back a fraction, just far enough that my lips grazed his when I spoke.
“Less talking, more kissing,” I ordered.
I’d gone to Hell and back for this guy. I wanted to collect my reward . . . with interest.
About Julie:
Julie Hall is an
award-winning, USA Today bestselling author of young adult fantasy
fiction.
Before writing her first novel Julie
worked as a film publicist and rubbed elbows with the rich and famous . . . as
in she would gently nudge them to let them know their meal had arrived during
press interviews.
She now spends most of her "office hours" with her two furry writing
buddies, Bear and Coco. Her daughter thinks that mommy's superpower is
“sleeping all day,” but that’s because she’s often awake until the wee hours of
the morning weaving tales of adventure in worlds of her own creation. When
asked in an interview what she wanted to be when she grew up, she’s quoted to
have answered, “to never have to grow up.”
She currently lives in Portland, Oregon with her four favorite people--her
husband, daughter, and two fur babies (because dogs are people too).
1 winner will receive a signed paperback
of HUNTRESS, the first book in the series as well as LIFE AFTER series swag
(signed character cards, magnets, bookmarks and stickers) and a $10 Amazon GC,
US Only.
I should apologize for my inconsistent updates lately. I won’t
because, well, you’re here for me – but I do recognize what’s happening. I have
a legitimate excuse this week. I was brought into the police station last
Tuesday night to give a statement about an accident I witnessed. Given the “seriousness”
of the incident, it was made clear that it was not optional. It was not
serious. Not really.
What was serious was the dismembered couple I left in the
alley on my way to witness the accident. Now that would be worthy of an
overnight visit to the police station. Of course, no one is ever alive to talk
about it.
A four car pile up with one death and minor injuries is not
serious. Even if it did involve a minor celebrity and a school bus.
I didn’t get home until the early hours on Wednesday and ended
up going in to work for half a day in the afternoon. The amount that people in
office jobs don’t care is both amusing and disconcerting. I could do pretty
much anything I wanted and no one would bat an eye. That co-worker I killed
sometime last year – or was it the year before? Nothing. One internal
investigation, one pot-luck lunch and we moved on as a company.
I will tell you this: any big corporation that claims to offer
a “personal touch” is straight-up lying to you. There is nothing personal about
office work. Granted, this is coming from someone who works here as an
alternative to prison – because I would, in fact, go crazy if I didn’t have a
boring cover story and a reason to vent my frustrations.
In many ways I am not dissimilar to Clark Kent; secret
double life, loved one who covers my ass, a penchant for murder. Seriously –
especially the early comics – our favourite illegal alien had a different set
of morals.
Times change. People’s opinion of reality changes. The caped
crusader throws people off of buildings.
Wait…that’s Batman.
Lots of superheroes have capes and Batman also throws people
off of buildings so…my point still stands.
I am so
excited that THE LEAK OF MADNESS by Alice
J. Black is available now and that I get to share the news!
If you
haven’t yet heard about this wonderful book by Author Alice J. Black, be sure
to check out all the details below.
This blitz
also includes a giveaway for 10 eBook copies of THE LEAK OF MADNESS, International,
courtesy of Parliament House Publishing and Rockstar Book Tours. So if you’d
like a chance to win, enter in the Rafflecopter at the bottom of this post.
The spirit world has been in touch with Peyton, and it’s more than she
can tolerate. Sometimes their messages are loud enough even to pierce beyond
the veil of her alcohol-induced stupors.
When she is invited to attend her best friend's brother’s wedding at The Manor
House, Peyton is compelled to stare down memories of her life before it was
decimated by fire and tragedy. Continuously topping herself up with alcohol to
keep the voices at bay, it becomes clearer and clearer that there are forces at
work in the old building…shadows darker than Peyton could have ever imagined.
The Leak of Madness is the beginning of a thrilling, fast-paced series of
horror novellas overflowing with intrigue, romance, redemption, and most
importantly…ghosts.
Will Peyton find the normal life she could have if only she stops drinking or
will the forces of evil drive her mad?
Book
Trailer:
Exclusive Excerpt:
“What would the lady like?” he asked as he stood behind the bar, waving
at the bottles in their optics.
Little did he know how much each of those bottles appealed. Like a kid
choosing candy in a store, I was transported back to my first drink, stolen
from my dad's cabinet. That one had been whiskey. Back then, I took whatever I
could get. Now I was old enough—and I might argue wise enough—to choose my own
poison.
“Do you know,” I started as I leaned over the bar, looking between the
man and the bottles. He really was a good-looking guy. “That you’re giving me
reason to give in to temptation.”
His smile widened. “Hey, if I didn't ply you with alcohol, what sort of
bar man would I be?”
I grinned as he continued to watch me. This guy still wore the label of
lad, and he was cute, but I had a couple of years on him. Still, age wasn’t
everything. “See the thing is,” I started again. “My friend doesn't like it
when I drink.”
“And is your friend your keeper?” He raised his brow.
“No, but see, that's my point. This has to be a secret.”
“Secret.” He leaned in conspiratorially and I couldn’t help but inhale
the deep scent of his aftershave. “I like secrets.”
About Alice:
I’m an author in the North East of
England where I live with my partner and overly-ferocious cat. I have been
writing for as long as I can remember mostly in the dark genres but recently, I
have expanded into other genres (such as young adult). My cupboard is stocked
with an array of different and funky notebooks (because you can never have too
many). My inspiration tends to come from a lot of different places but my first
novel and a lot of my ideas come from my rather vivid dreams (which my partner
tells me I tell him about as I’m still dreaming!)
